My Real Life Nightmare
by Kate Skye Ride
Summary: Kaoru has been bullied since middle school, surprisingly being able to hide it from Hikaru too... Until the day of his worst beating. When Hikaru steps in, feelings are announced & fools made of each other. How long will it take for everyone to come to terms with the idea of the twins, & how far will Hikaru go to keep them together? T for language & violence.
1. Truth is truth, no matter how sad

Hey there!

So new story, and I understand I'll be picking up hopefully a bunch of new Skyders, so welcome if that's you! If you've come from my blog or another story, then thanks for checking in!

This is the first story not for the Maximum Ride fandom, that I'm actually serious about. Like not Tetris or a Merlin parody.

I hope you like it, more ramble at the end!

Disclaimer: I don't own Ouran (sadly) nor anything familiar, but the two OCs that appear briefly in some of the chapters are of my creation!

ENJOY!

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**Chapter 1 - Truth is truth, no matter how sad**

**Kaoru POV**

"You can run, but you can't hide..." Lee taunted. And as much as he wished, Kaoru knew he was right... And with every breath, and every step, they closed in behind him.

Just gotta get to the top floor, he told himself as he bounded up the stairs. But it was a lie. Kaoru actually had much farther to go, but he knew he wouldn't make it that far.

"Almost there..." he muttered as he reached the next flight of stairs. His eyes were filled with tears, the wind smashing against his open wounds. Kaoru's pale face, was more so than usual, and his soft red hair, caked with mud, sweat and blood.

This wasn't the first time they had gotten to him. Lee and Kanata have always bullied Kaoru, but this was the worst they had done yet.

His cheek was split, his chest bruising, his leg was throbbing more and more with each step. But Kaoru knew it would be worse if he stopped.

Kaoru knew he was the weaker twin, softer and less aggressive, the gentler one, so this was probably his fault, he thought. He needed to stand up for himself more, at least that's what Tamaki said when Kaoru told him.

**-flashback-**

"Kaoru, you know I say this with all kindness intended, but you really need to start taking better care of yourself, and stand up for yourself, you know... Hikaru won't always be there to protect you..." Tamaki said gently, watching for a reaction from Kaoru, but all he did was flinch at the mention of his twin. "He doesn't know, does he?" Tamaki asked. Kaoru shook his head shyly, before looking up to his friend.

"Don't tell him, please... I... I don't want him to worry about me..." Kaoru pleaded.

"I won't. But just know, there is a difference between worrying and caring..." Tamaki smiled carefully, holding Kaoru's gaze with his deep blue, almost purple, eyes.

**-end of flashback-**

"He's up there!" Kanata boomed, bringing Kaoru out of his daze.

He stumbled up the stairs, and was almost at the top when someone grabbed his shirt and pulled him backwards.

For half a second, Kaoru thought, or maybe just hoped, it was Hikaru, but it was too rough to be his brother. Instead it was Lee and Kanata.

Kaoru was greeted by a punch in the stomach, square in the solar-plexus. He buckled over, clutching his stomach, gasping for air, as fresh tears rolled down his face, and the pair of boys pelted him with punches and insults.

Kanata took the first blow, then pushed his boot into Kaoru's shoulder, forcing him to the ground so that the boys could continue to beat him. They took turns tormenting him, pulling at his red hair, ripping at the blue uniform blazer he wore, punching him, kicking him and just plain beating him up.

"You know, this really is your fault..." Lee shouted at Kaoru between blows. "If you weren't so pathetic, you would never have been in this situation..."

Kaoru just tried his best to ignore them and come up with a way to distract them, just for long enough to get away.

"Hey butt-breath!" he heard someone call out. No. Not 'someone', but Tamaki.

The boys let up long enough for Kaoru to see that it was . "Tamaki?" he whimpered, half because he was in pain from the beatings, but also because he was scared for his friend.

"Why don't you leave him alone!" Tamaki said as he walked closer.

"Ha!" Kanata scoffed. "You and what army?" Kaoru strained his neck up to see what was happening. In a single moment Kanata's foot was removed from Kaoru, and if he had blinked, he would've missed Lee's dark blonde hair being grabbed, and thrown at Kanata, much like a bowling pin.

"We may not be an army, but we can sure as hell take one down," Honey-sempai said menacingly. Well, as menacing as a Lolita-boy with a very premature voice can be. His cousin stood at his side, agreeing with a deep 'mm.'

Kanata and Lee leapt up from the floor and ran at the two cousins, but that was all Kaoru saw before Tamaki ran over and helped him up.

"Quickly now, we don't have a lot of time..." Tamaki whispered as he pulled Kaoru up. "Honey and Mori can keep them busy, yes, but we don't want an all out fight... Not here, not now..." Kaoru knew what he meant... Yes, they deserved it, but the club didn't need anyone to think they were condoning violence.

Kaoru had no sooner gotten to his feet, when Tamaki whisked him around the corner, out of harm's way. It was there that Tamaki check to see if Kaoru was okay, properly.

"Oh, Kaoru..." he sighed, wiping some dust off Kaoru's back, as if that was the worst thing that had happened. Tamaki then turned Kaoru around to see how bad it was from the front.

Kaoru's cheek was swollen and cut, already starting to bruise. His hair was still a mess of blood, mud and sweat, but now it was tangled and his scalp was aching from the boys yanking at it. His chest hurt every time he took in a breath. His neck had clicked out of place, and his back felt cut up.

The pain was too much for Kaoru, so much that when Tamaki pulled him in to a comforting hug, he didn't resist.

"Kaoru?" called the familiar voice of Hikaru. "Kaoru, if running away from me is some kind of joke, it's not fun..." Hikaru cut himself off midsentence when he saw his twin in the arms of Tamaki, eyes so close to crying, it looked like they already had been. It was easy to see how quickly Hikaru's rage boiled up, as well as his shock, fear and love.

He bolted over to the pair, and stopped just short of them, when Tamaki stepped back to allow the brothers to face each other.

"Hi-Hikaru," Kaoru breathed when he felt his twin's presence. He was doing his best to avoid Hikaru's golden eyes.

Even though Hikaru wanted to comfort his brother, to ask him what happened, he just found himself counting the wounds on Kaoru's pale face, the pain each breath showed him and the way his hair was coated in gunk.

"I'm so sorry Hikaru," Kaoru muttered as he ran off. It took Hikaru a moment to gauge what had just happened. In a flash, he had taken off after his younger twin, and was quickly catching up to him, when Kaoru stumbled on an out of place tile. Reacting only on whim, Hikaru reached out to catch his brother, spinning him around when he did so that Kaoru was in his arms.

"Why are you sorry?" Hikaru whispered gently. "I just want to know a few things, okay Kao?"

"Yes," Kaoru responded, a little taken aback at how quickly he went from falling to being in Hikaru's arms. Not that he minded.

"Who did this to you?" Hikaru asked.

"Kanata Shui and Lee Onsa," Kaoru answered quickly, and honestly. He felt Hikaru's grip tighten around him, ever so subtly that Hikaru himself probably didn't even notice, when he said the boys' names.

"How long has this been happening?"

"Um..." Kaoru stalled to think about how long it had been. Then he remembered. "Middle school." It was the one day that the class teacher split the two of them up. Kaoru was stuck with Shui and Onsa in a group, and Hikaru was put into a group with two girls, neither of whom got any attention from the older twin.

**-flashback-**

"Which one are you?" Lee demanded.

"If you can't tell, then you don't need to," Kaoru answered flippantly. In an attempt to throw the boys off his trail, he slid his arm over the name on his text books.

"You're Kaoru, aren't you?" Kanata said, reading the initials on his book bag. Kaoru froze. _Why would they want to know who I am, anyway?_ he thought to himself.

"Yeah," he answered, not coming up with a good enough reason to lie to them. After all, what harm could come?

"Well listen up, Kaoru," Lee said. "If you think you can look down on us, think again." With that, Kanata punched him fair in the shoulder, as if to emphasise what they were saying.

They were in those groups for a whole term. Each time, Kaoru would take a beating of sorts, and get a threat; if he told anyone, there would be hell to pay.

Gradually, the boys figured out which one was which just by the way they talked and their actions. Kaoru was a forgiving person, less likely to try and punch you if you got on his bad side.

So, they could tell which one to bully, and which one to leave alone.

**-end of flashback-**

Hikaru was still frozen from the shock announcement. His twin had been getting bullied since they were in middle school, and Hikaru never found out?

"Why didn't you tell me?" Hikaru whispered out his last question as more of a shock than the last had been. "Don't you trust me?"

"Hika, that's not it. It's just that... I didn't want you worrying about me... I just didn't want you to stress out about my problems... It was affecting you when even the slightest thing happened to me, so I couldn't imagine what it would be like with something like this..." Kaoru pressed.

"So, how did you hide it from me all these years?" Hikaru asked with tears pricking in his eyes, threatening to break the barrier of his eyes at any second.

"Well, I never had any open wounds, and if I did they were small enough to be overlooked. So I used concealer to cover it up... And emotionally, I just smiled as much as I could and constantly reminded myself that if you found out, it would make you so upset that I knew I wouldn't handle if you were..." Kaoru explained carefully.

"Last question... Why did you go to all that trouble to keep me happy?" Hikaru asked, looking into his twin's eyes for the first time since he started with the questions...

"I was afraid you'd ask this..." Kaoru said lightly. He knew why, it was just... It was going to be hard to explain this to his brother... "Because, Hikaru... I... I love you." Kaoru watched his twin intently and he registered what was just said.

"Yeah, I love you too, Kao," Hikaru replied flippantly.

"No," Kaoru muttered. "That's not what I meant..." Kaoru held the pause out to figure a way to get it through to his twin what he meant. "Not just like brothers..." He said the last bit the quietest so that Hika mightn't hear. But he did.

"What?" Hikaru asked. He was pretty sure he knew what was said, but wanted to know he wasn't imagining this.

Apparently his voice played up the emotion because Kaoru had tears begin to silently fall from his eyes. "Oh, you heard me, Hika. I know you did," he stuttered through his quivering lips... "I'm sorry if it was out of place, but I said I love you." And with that, Kaoru was off again, running back past where he and Tamaki had stood moments ago, past the stairs he had the fight on, and down into the main courtyard, turning to run behind the building.

"God, you're an idiot Kaoru!" He screamed at himself, as he slid his back against the wall and slipped down so he was sitting. He pulled his knees to his chest and rested his forehead against the tops of his knees, letting the sobs flow and the tears fall.

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So what did you think? The idea for the story actually came to me just after I had to present a speech to my English class. I died, to say the least.

Sorry if any characters were off, still getting used to working with these guys. I'm more used to working with OCs or book characters, so this is a first.

And now on to the fun stuff!

As you may know from my other stories, I do a "pretty little question" at the end of every chapter, to learn a little about you guys and sometimes because I genuinely need help. Let's start with something simple, hey?

PLQ: Rain or sun?

MY PLA: Rain. It's so much more relaxing and better weather to write!

So this is about it for this chapter! I don't tend to update until I have a reasonable amount of reviews or it's been a week, whichever happens first. So if we could hit ten I'd be stoked! All reviews accepted, except flames... No flames...

But I allow anonymous reviews, so don't let laziness or a lack of account stop you!

Hope you've enjoyed and I'll see you all next time!

Fly high, Skyders!

Love, Kate!


	2. And that made two

Hey Skyders!

Thanks to everyone for reviewing and reading and such!

More notices on "Taken, Tortured, Violated" if you're interested in a life update for me! Otherwise check my blog (link on profile) for all of my latest news about pretty much everything.

Let's get this show on the road, hey?

Disclaimer: Still own nada.

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**Chapter 2 – And that made two**

**Hikaru POV**

It was obvious, Hikaru had pissed Kaoru off by second guessing what he said. But what was more obvious, was how pained Hikaru felt seeing his brother cry again, but this time at his doing...

"Kaoru..." he whispered to himself, as if waking up to what was happening. "Kaoru!" he called out a little more desperately as he ran after his younger twin, his feet not seeming to carry him fast enough.

Almost falling over with every step, Hikaru tried to hold back his anger and use it for speed. He knew he'd pissed Kaoru off, and he knew it wasn't going to be easy to fix this.

Hikaru wanted to kick himself for what he was doing to Kaoru. Why did he freak out like that? Was it really that bad? Or was it that Hikaru had been hoping for this all along?

Hikaru decided he had always loved his brother, just more so now than before... The way they acted for the girls was no longer an act for Hikaru. He felt a need to be the one who could hold him, and be there for him... And seeing the damage done to Kaoru he realized how strong the need was to be with him… Not unlike the Host Club had advertised them as… The 'brotherly love package', they'd been called… It only occurred to him then that he wanted them to be just that. Maybe even more than just as brothers. More like, as lovers.

It was off limits, Hikaru knew. It was wrong and probably never going to happen, but he couldn't help how he felt. It's like falling in love with your best friend, Hikaru had known Kao his whole life and from that he knew it could be okay. He knew if they both wanted this, that they could work it out... Or at least he hoped to god they would.

Falling over a step at the door, Hikaru fell to his knees. He heard his brother's feet carrying him farther and farther away from Hikaru. He let his mind wander for a moment.

To all the times he could've...no, _should've_seen this happening. Like when they'd climb into bed together and Kaoru would grimace as he lied down. When they'd be playing up the brotherly love for the host club and some of Kaoru's normally perfectly pale porcelain skin would be rough and red. And perhaps the most obvious, when Kaoru kept running off in pure fright. Hikaru knew he shouldn't have let them slide as easily as he did.

Hikaru pulled himself off the ground and was running after Kaoru again in a flash.

"Kaoru!" he screamed again, bolting down the stairs, almost knocking Tamaki over in the process. He stopped at the bottom of the stairs, realising he had no idea where to go. He'd just been following the sounds of his brother's cries and Hikaru had been just running in the most familiar direction he could, out of the building.

Hikaru's heart was racing, his breath irregular and his fists clenching more with every step. He was going to smash whoever had hurt his brother, his Kaoru, to pieces. But first Hikaru knew he needed to find him. He needed to find Kaoru, apologize, explain and make things right. Then he'd be free to beat the living daylights out of Lee and Kanata.

He stood there quietly for a moment, listening to hear Kaoru. After a couple more silent breaths had passed, Hikaru heard the soft whimpering of his brother.

After a moment of breathing and trying to think about what he was going to say, Hikaru walked quietly around the corner and slithered down next to Kaoru, thankfully without him noticing until he reached to put the boy's hand in his own. At this Kaoru looked up in shock.

"Hikaru?" he asked through his red, puffy eyes, flinching away slightly as Hikaru pulled him into his embrace. "What are you doing...?" Kaoru mumbled as he tried not to be taken aback by the closeness of his brother.

"I only asked what because I wasn't certain of what you said, you know," Hikaru said mumbling into his twin's hair. "I didn't want to get my hopes up unless I knew what you'd said was what I'd heard." Kaoru's eyes lit up at the end of Hikaru's sentence.

"What?" Kaoru said, his eyes filled with joy and his smile grew ever so subtly. Hikaru reached his hand that wasn't entwined in Kaoru's and stroked his face gently, pulling him closer so he could whisper in Kaoru's ear.

"I love you too."

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Ta da! So to anyone who asked for a nice thing to happen to Kaoru, there you go! Perfect example!

PLQ WINNER: As White As Snow!

PLQ: If you had to forget how to write or talk, which would it be and why?

MY PLA: Talk. And for some people who know me personally they may doubt that, but I can actually keep myself content without needing to talk. Second to that, I didn't say I couldn't sing (Victorious quote from Cat in the episode with iCarly).

So that's all from me! Check out my blog for more randomness of me and stuff about exams will be up soon!

And as always, more reviews means faster updates!

Until then!

Fly high, Skyders!

Love, Kate.

RR&A!


	3. A dream come true is a nightmare itself

Hey Skyders!

And before you say anything, yes I know it's been too long since I updated. I'm sorry. I've been juggling exams, extra-curriculars and everything school related, as well as helping a heap with all of my siblings. So it's pretty damn obvious why I haven't had any time to write and/or update.

This chapter is a little longer than the one before, introduces another OC and sets up part of the main plot. Working on the next chapter now so it can be up faster.

Disclaimer: If I owned Ouran, there would be another season out already.

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**Chapter 3**

**3rd person**

Those four words made all the difference to Kaoru. His sobs increased, but no longer from being upset.

"Kaoru?" Hikaru asked, pulling back from his brother. "What's the matter?" Kaoru shook his head and pulled Hikaru closer to him again.

"Nothing," he whispered, ignoring most of the physical pain. "Nothing at all."

"Then why are you crying?" Hikaru laughed.

"Because for the first time in a while, everything feels right," Kaoru said, almost regretfully.

"Good," Hikaru replied, protectively pulling his brother ever so subtly tighter. Hikaru closed his eyes and pressed his lips ever carefully into the younger of the two's hair, ignoring the grime and mud that caked parts of it.

The two sat together in silence for a moment, just acknowledging that things had changed, and that it now truly was just them.

But even with all the bliss of the situation, Kaoru still couldn't sit still for long.

"Help me up?" he asked, giving Hikaru a pleading look. He just laughed in response, pushed himself off the ground and carefully grabbed Kaoru's arms, then pulling gently to get him to a standing position. "Thanks," Kaoru muttered, becoming ever aware of the pain he was left with after this beating.

"Kaoru," Hikaru cautioned noticing his twin's speed drop, his limping and his pure lack of coordination. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just a bit stiff, I guess..."

"Liar," the older said, pausing by a seat to help Kaoru sit again. "We need to get you help."

"No, I'll be fine," Kaoru insisted. "I always am."

"Yeah but, no offense Kao," Hikaru started. "You look pretty beaten up and I don't know how much I should trust your judgement at the moment."

Kaoru laughed. He knew he was in more pain that he let Hikaru see, but just how bad was it.

He began to poke experimentally over his arms, the usual test for bruises. He made it almost the whole way to his hip before he reached a supremely tender spot.

"Geh..." Kaoru gasped. Upon hearing the grimace, Hikaru tensed up and his anger boiled.

"Kao?" he said, worry dripping from his words.

"Maybe the nurse would a good place to start?" he laughed, trying to loosen his brother up a little.

Hikaru just watched in fear that something might have happened to this boy he loved so much. Kaoru then got up and started to limp back toward the main building when he tripped over and slammed down on his ankle.

It took one more audible gasp before Hikaru had come over to him and scooped Kaoru into his arms.

"Hika," Kaoru whined, merely for the sake of whining. He didn't like being treated like a baby a lot, but he did enjoy being close to Hikaru like that. So instead Kaoru just wrapped his arms around Hikaru's neck and rested his head on his brother's chest.

As they walked back into the building, the pair passed the gathering Host Club at the bottom of the stair, all of whom saw what had happened and each celebrated in a way. Honey jumped up and down, and hugged Usachan close. Mori nodded and gave his little grunt of agreement. Kyoya smiled, slightly tipping his head forward, before writing something down on his clipboard. Tamaki squealed a little, before embracing Haruhi in a tight hug. Surprisingly the girl complied and hugged him back.

Hikaru smiled, and looking down to Kaoru in his arms he saw the boy blushing to high heavens. It was good to see some colour back to his cheeks.

"What's the matter, Kao?" Hikaru teased. "Embarrassed by me already?"

"No more than usual," Kaoru mocked back, before lightly pecking him on the cheek. This in turn, made Hikaru the blusher of the two.

They walked in relative silence together for the remainder of the distance to Ayuko's, the school nurse, office, enjoying the company of each other.

Kaoru was almost asleep by the time they reached the office. Hikaru kicked the door open carefully and walked up to Ayuko's desk. Ayuko looked momentarily from her typing to see who had come in, but the smile was wiped clean off her face when she saw who it was.

"Oh gosh," she gasped. "What happened?"

"He can tell you the full story later, but he's been beaten up by two students pretty badly," Hikaru replied quietly. "And now, he's asleep." He laughed inwardly at the last sentence.

"Okay, well bring him through and I'll see what I can do for him, okay?" Ayuko said as cheerily as she could, clearly trying to keep Hikaru calm.

"Thank you," he said as he walked out the back, laying Kaoru on the small bed.

"Now, Mr Hitachiin," Ayuko said walking to meet the pair. "I'll need you to fill out some paperwork, if you'd just come with me for a moment."

"Hika," Kaoru said quietly, stopping the two from exiting. "Don't leave me."

"Never," Hikaru said walking back to his brother's side.

"Oh, so you're Kaoru..." Ayuko mumbled writing something on a wad of paper, reminding both boys of Kyoya.

"He is, and do you think I could do the paperwork here?" Hikaru asked, sitting on the chair next to his brother.

Ayuko smiled and nodded, heading back to the main office. Kaoru smiled and grabbed his brother's hand.

"Thank you," he whispered, before falling back into the arms of sleep.

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And that concludes today's chapter!

But don't worry, more will be up soon!

PLQ WINNER: As White As Snow... Again. Nothing wrong with that, but gee you people don't know how to answer my questions.

PLQ: Summer or winter?

MY PLA: Winter, you can snuggle up with people and get warm... Summer's too hot for that sometimes.

So that's pretty much all I have left to say! Another apology for the late update, but it's here now!

See you all next update around!

Be you, be true, Skyders!

Love, Kate!

RR&A!


	4. Overcoming the dark

Hey Skyders! I know it's been a while, but I've been really busy with everything at home.

This chapter is long overdue and should be longer, but isn't. I'm sorry about that. I would promise for a longer update coming soon, but I can't because I'm busy all weekend and have no idea when I'll get another chance to write.

So for now, here's the latest in the world of Ouran!

Disclaimer: In case you hadn't noticed, I still don't own anything except a pair of heels and my small piano/keyboard.

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**Chapter 4**

**3rd person**

Watching Kaoru sleep was peaceful for Hikaru. He enjoyed seeing his lover so calm, and it almost made him forget about what had been done to him.

Almost.

As Ayuko dabbed at the wounds on Kaoru while he slept, Hikaru was having trouble not bursting out of there and killing Lee and Kanata. Every time the cotton touched his skin Kaoru would flinch and his breath would be a little more forced.

And Hikaru hated it.

Each slice on Kaoru's face, each bruise on his arm, each jagged breath he took, it was all killing Hikaru. To see the boy he loved in such a poor condition. He knew he had to get out of there.

"Can I leave him with you for a moment?" Hikaru asked, slipping his hand out from his brother's carefully so's not to disturb him.

"Yes, of course," Ayuko replied. With that, Hikaru jumped up and ran out of the room.

_How could I have overlooked this all, _Hikaru yelled inwardly. He knew exactly where he was going, and what he was going to do when he got there.

"Kanata!" he screamed upon sighting. Hikaru stormed over to the startled boy and punched his mouth, breaking teeth upon impact. Lee turned to see blood spraying everywhere and raced to get Hikaru, pulling his hand back into a fist. Hikaru just dodged this and tripped him before pelting each boy with as many punches and kicks as he could.

No sooner had he gotten into the pair than several tears rolled down Hikaru's face. Just thinking about Kaoru's pain as he did this made his blood-lust stronger and more imminent.

But Lee saw this as their opening to turn the tables. He kicked backwards, planting his feet into Hikaru's chest. This sent him flying and allowed both Kanata and Lee to get up.

But Hikaru was faster.

He jumped straight back up and unleashed full anger on the two boys, kicking and punching like there was no tomorrow.

"If...You...So...Much...As...Touch...Kao...Ru...A...Gain!" Hikaru said with each blow, "I...Will...Not...Be...So...Kind!" He then let the boys up and gave them one final glare, which left them running away, tripping over their own feet.

Turning around as if nothing had happened, he walked in silence back to the office and slipped back inside hopefully before Kaoru noticed his absence.

But he had.

"Hikaru," Kaoru mumbled, sitting up slowly. Ayuko was back in the office, already done with the simple patching jobs.

"Hey Kao," Hikaru said, taking a seat on the edge of his brother's bed.

"You shouldn't done that..." Kaoru said worriedly. "I saw you know..."

"I'm sorry you saw, but not that I did it." The older Hitachiin grabbed gently at his brother's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "They shouldn't done what they've done to you for so long." Kaoru breathed a laugh before leaning back on his elbow.

Hikaru pecked his cheek and smiled at him before standing up. "Get some rest. I won't be far." He walked out of the small infirmary and back into the main office, leaving the younger of the two blushing himself to sleep.

* * *

So I hope you liked that! Took me ages to write because I had to find a guy friend to help me with what Hikaru should do when he's upset at what's happened. I would've asked my brilliant big "brother" Shaymin687 (please find his YouTube channel on my profile and take a looksy!) but he's a bit different to the male population as a whole and my actual brother is just plain pathetic.

And this was supposed to go up when I put up my other story, but our internet has been playing up a fair bit lately.

PLQ WINNER: BrizzyBabber! Gotta give 'em props for loving snow and for going and reviewing each chapter, so THANK YOU!

PLQ: What do you prefer for swimming: Beach, pool, river or other?

MY PLA: River, 100%. Its easier to find shade, to escape people and it's just how I grew up.

Thank you all for the constant support! Special mentions to KyokoDreamer, As White As Snow and HornyCorny, for giving me a friend to rely on, encouragement to post in the form of pestering 24/7, and confidence in the story. You three mean a lot to me, and so do all my readers! I love you all!

Until next time, don't get into too much trouble because I don't have enough money to bail you all out of jail.

Always, forever, and absolutely never.

Read, write, give up.

Love, Kate!

RR&A!


	5. Christmas with the Host Club!

Merry Christmas, Skyders!

So, this is my traditional thing. I do a late night, last minute, Christmas special, and let me tell you how last minute this was... I began writing this at about 3pm... Wrote until about 5pm, and finished it just moments ago (9pm) so here's hoping you like it!

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**Chapter 5 – Christmas with the Hosts!**

**3rd person**

**December 24.**

Two months on and everything was back to normal. The Host club was back in full swing, holding a Christmas party at one of Kyoya's many beach houses, this one with a rather large and open function room turned ballroom. And Hikaru and Kaoru were celebrating for more than one reason.

Kaoru had almost entirely healed with only a few of the broken bones needing to fully realign. This was perfect timing for the two, as that day marked they had been together for two months.

More people than not had accepted the two's status, some even swearing they saw it from months ago. Their parents didn't totally love the idea at first, but they eventually came to terms with it once they saw how each boy cared for the other. Mother had been more accepting of it; she'd seen the way they looked at each other ever since they were young. And even if she couldn't always tell them apart, she knew that they would take care of themselves together.

Father had been a little more awkward with the boys when he found out. Although he didn't disown them, he felt more uncomfortable in the beginning. After a little while, he decided he would accept whatever fate his children had chosen for themselves, but made a small request that the two wouldn't show any physical affection in his presence. Both boys seemed to accept this.

The only people who weren't fond of it didn't matter to them. Hikaru was always tense around anyone who made remarks, but one look at Kaoru fixed all of his doubts.

So there they stood, arm in arm, watching the room take shape in front of them. They looked at each other briefly before stepping into the room in their matching Christmas themed outfits. They moved perfectly in time with each other, walking towards the assembled Hosts by the bar.

"Evening boys," Kyoya said. "You're late."

"Sorry," Kaoru said, "but we got caught in some traffic."

"Indeed, it seems everyone is coming to the coast for their Christmas." The shadow king then slanted his eyes down to his phone. "It looks like our King is running late also."

"Soon," Mori said to Haruhi, hearing her sigh at the news. She looked up at him and smiled, knowing full well that he was right.

Everyone looked brilliant, all in outfits designed by the twin's mother and chosen by Kaoru. Even Hikaru was kept in the dark as to what he was choosing until moments before he changed.

**-flashback -**

"Kao," he'd whispered. "These are beautiful."

"You like them?" he blushed in return.

"I love them."

**-end of flashback-**

"Well," Kyoya said breaking the silence. "We can't keep our guests waiting any longer." He then signalled for Mori and Honey to go with him to invite the girls in. Haruhi fixed her tie, grumbling something about having to wear boys' clothes again. Kaoru attempted, unsuccessfully, to flick a stray hair out of his eyes, this just making Hikaru laugh until he gave in and helped when flashed with a pleading look.

"Welcome, girls," Kyoya said, turning on the charm. "Unfortunately Tamaki is caught up with something, but will be joining us shortly. But feel free to come in and enjoy yourselves!"

A rush of girls then flooded the room, wearing colourful dresses that made everything so Christmas themed, as if it weren't before.

The Hosts immediately got to work, serving refreshments and doing so with style. Honey was instantly swept up by a group of girls to dance, giggling and smiling as he ran off with them. Mori and Haruhi were both asked to dance quite quickly also. Kyoya even had a little line of girls wishing to dance with him.

To anyone who might've walked in, the scene was perfect. The girls all crowded around the hosts, lining up in order for dances. The hosts smiled equally with their dance partners. Even the Hitachiins were separated and dancing with some of the girls. Everyone was having a good time.

Tamaki ran from his car, pausing at the doors to adjust his suit and gather his composure. He wanted to look good, not like he'd just run a mile.

He saw all the girls inside laughing, all his hosts smiling and he too smiled. It made him feel like he'd accomplished something to see everyone so happy.

Kyoya saw him standing there after a moment or two, but didn't make any reactions. Well, besides the thought of _'what is that idiot doing out there?'_

When Haruhi spun around and faced the door she felt her heart leap a little to see Tamaki, but she refused to let her face react. She was impressed by his outfit, simple and yet displayed every inch of his personality and flair. She'd be sure to thank Kaoru for that later.

It took the guests a while more to see their king, even those sitting around looking bored as they waited for him. But once they did, everyone stopped and began clapping, for no apparent reason other than they'd waited for him.

"Good evening, my dears," Tamaki smiled once he'd walked through the doors. He held his hands up, one waving; one blowing kisses at the girls. "I see you're all having fun." And he was right. Not one person was left out in the action, all girls and hosts accounted for.

-time pass-

"Merry Christmas, Princess!" Tamaki called after the last girl to leave. And once the door was shut, all seven hosts fell onto the lounge, utterly exhausted from entertaining all night. Kaoru untied his shoes and rest his head on Hikaru's shoulder. Hikaru ran his hand through Kaoru's hair and smiled at the dancing he'd seen earlier from the boy.

Haruhi lent straight into Tamaki's arms, the boy catching her perfectly and planting a kiss on her head as she undid her tie and top button.

Honey was barely on the couch by the time his eyes were shut and Mori handed him Usachan, seeming to have been just that far away the whole time. Honey looked up and smiled his thanks sleepily, before plopping his head on Usachan and falling asleep.

Kyoya took a deep breath and closed his eyes, pushing his glasses to the bridge of his nose. "Well, that was eventful," he sighed after a moment.

"Yeah," Hikaru returned.

"I trust you can all find your rooms well?" Kyoya said, giving a brief nod to the staff. "I'll have my staff bring up the rest of your things." Everyone nodded, except Haruhi. They'd all stayed there before, but she hadn't.

"Uh, Kyoya?" she asked. But she needn't have.

"Sorry, Haruhi, I have only five rooms spare in the house at the moment," he said slowly. "There is a spare bed in Tamaki's room." Tamaki's face widened when Kyoya said there was a spare bed in his room. "So long as you two promise not to get up to any funny business, I'm sure there won't be a problem with the two of you sharing a room."

"What funny business?" Tamaki laughed, pulling Haruhi closer towards himself. Kyoya just held up his phone.

"Tamaki, I have her father's number on speed dial," he said menacingly. "If there is so much as a squeak from that room, I will have him over here in a matter of minutes."

"Hey! Why do the twins not get threatened like us?" Tamaki whined.

"Because, you idiot, they sleep together even when they don't have to," Kyoya said plainly. "Now, I will be off to bed. " He turned around and began to walk off towards the stairs when he paused and looked back at the hosts assembled around the lounge.

"Yes?" Tamaki said, waiting for another threat.

"Merry Christmas," Kyoya smiled slightly, before heading back up the stairs. Those two words put everyone in a good mood, they all felt more awake than before. Kaoru looked over and up at Hikaru, finding his smile soon pressed into his own.

"Merry Christmas, Kao," Hikaru whispered into his ear.

"Merry Christmas, Hika."

* * *

Tada! A nice long chapter for you guys! My gift to you!

PLQ WINNER: AsWhiteAsSnow! Very inventive with the spa idea!

PLQ: What's your favourite thing about Christmas?

MY PLA: Getting together with all my family and friends for a good time and just having fun. That's the best part for me.

So with that, I bid you a very Merry Christmas, a safe holiday and I shall be back shortly!

And I have a bonus question: Should the story continue on from there? Or should I just leave it? It's all up to you guys. I'll be waiting for enough votes (7 entries at least, with 5 or more for the favouring side) before I post anything else in relation to this!

See you next time, Skyders! Have a happy holiday!

Always, forever, and absolutely never.

Read, write, give up.

Love, Kate!

RR&A!


	6. It turns out alright

-emerges from shadows- ...please don't kill me…

Hi! I'm so so so so SO sorry it's been this long. Believe me, I did not want a three month gap, and I'm really sorry there was that long. I've just been super busy with the new year at school, my siblings and all my music stuff so I haven't had much time to write. I've had this idea for ages, but actually wrote it today really.

I'll let you get onto the juicy chapter that took me an eternity to write, so ENJOY!

Disclaimer: If I owned anything, this update would've been about three months earlier.

* * *

**Epilogue – It turns out alright**

**3rd person**

Two years later; graduation day.

There they all were, the whole host club, both past and present, were in music room 3 for the last time.

"Oh, my Haruhi's all grown up!" Tamaki squealed, pulling the young woman into a tight embrace, when the twins opened the doors. They just laughed to themselves, laced their fingers together and walked into the room, perfectly in sync as always.

The three of them were about to make the final leap between child and adult. And not only would this mean that they were leaving, it would mean the end of the host club. The four who had graduated in earlier years all came back on a regular basis and helped organise everything, but it had really been up to the twins and Haruhi (well just Haruhi actually) to keep everything running this past year.

Oh and there was still Rengé. She helped a bit, but still hadn't gotten over the fact that Haruhi was female. So she'd tended to keep her distance after she found out, and avoided Tamaki slightly more again when she found out that they'd kept it secret for so long.

So that really made it the four of them graduating. But Rengé had said she wasn't going to be attending the final opening, as she had done on several occasions since the announcement.

The way it happened for Haruhi was that on Tamaki's graduation eve, the host club held a party of sorts and she'd decided it had gone on long enough. So she showed up in a dress to the party, and didn't wrap her chest from that day on.

The girls had reacted in different ways. Some of them swore they knew it, some didn't mind and others were so appalled they left immediately, swearing never to go near the host club again.

It had its affects on business, but they were both negative and positive. It meant that some of the girls who were regular customers of Haruhi's stopped coming, but then the host club also gained a few more members who were just looking for a friend to talk to and even a couple boys.

But that didn't matter anymore. The host club would be officially closed as of the party tomorrow night. It was to be held in the school, with no fewer than 700 people expected to attend. The host club weren't the only ones arranging the event, hence the size. Ouran Academy was holding their end of year ball and had asked the host club to make their final appearance.

But that was hours away. For now, the seven members were all gathering before the graduation ceremony began.

"I suppose I ought to say something now, huh," the Shadow king mumbled. Everyone ceased their conversations and looked towards Kyoya. "Well, we did it. We lasted three years of Tamaki's insanity," he began.

"HEY!" Tamaki shouted in protest when everyone laughed.

"And we lasted three years of the host club. Sure we had our ups and downs, but it was well worth it in the end." Everyone's laughter somewhat ceased, turning into smiles. They were all happy. The twins joined hands and so did Haruhi and Tamaki. "So, let's propose a toast!" Kyoya said lifting his glass. Since they were on school grounds, and no one had any alcohol on them, the group just had glasses of water. "To the seven of us, staying together through all our king's crazy schemes." He nodded at Tamaki and downed the last of his drink.

The somewhat formality of it all was nice. This was the first time in a while they'd all been back in the club room together. It was quite an amazing sight. Mitskuni, Takashi, Kyoya and Tamaki were all dressed in suits. The twins were in their school uniforms as usual, and Haruhi in her uniform, still the male one as she still refused to wear the dress, something about it being too weird to change this late in her schooling, with a black gown over it. She was valedictorian, as anyone would've guessed.

In those last moments, everything seemed to slow down. Every laugh felt like a hundred, every smile, a hundred more. The host club stood around with each other, taking nothing for granted.

Honey and Mori had done this twice before, Kyoya and Tamaki just last year. They all knew how quickly the time would pass and so none wasted a second.

-time pass-

"...And I wish each and everyone one of you luck, we made it this far, how hard can the rest of it be?" Haruhi said finishing her speech. The crowd cheered back at her as she smiled and hurried off the stage. Someone from within the crowd threw their graduation cap, and the rest of the graduates followed quickly. And with that the ceremony was over.

Haruhi hurried to Tamaki, who engulfed the young woman in an embrace. "How was that?" she asked into his shoulder.

"Brilliant, just like you," he replied, kissed her forehead gently as she blushed into his shoulder.

-line, line, line, I'm a pretty little line-

"We made it, Hika," Kaoru marvelled into his brother's arms.

"We sure did," Hikaru replied.

"So, now what?" Kaoru asked, starting to walk away with his brother back towards the club room.

"I have no idea," Hikaru laughed back. "But I do know one thing."

"And what's that?"

"That whatever we do, I want to do with you." Hikaru pulled Kaoru into his embrace and

In that moment, Kaoru realized something. That maybe they weren't the most normal couple... Maybe their relationship wasn't the most accepted... And maybe they weren't the "average lovers". But they were happy. And that's all that mattered to him.

* * *

TADA!

Hope you guys enjoyed my first Ouran fic! I loved writing it for you guys and all of you have been so positive! Thanks so much!

Shoutouts:

AsWhiteAsSnow - This girl is amazing. She's kept me writing the whole time with that little look she gives me whenever she passes me in the hallways at school. She's so understanding it makes me feel bad that it took this long for the update! And it's her birthday tomorrow so can we all join together and sing for her? -begins to sing- Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear AsWhiteAsSnow, happy birthday to you!

HornyCorny - My inspiration to start writing Ouran fics, and another reason I actually finished this story. Otherwise it would still just be another idea in a very, very, VERY long list of stories I'd like to write.

KyokoDreamer - Another inspiration for Ouran fics and my third reason I finished it.

And of course all the readers and reviewers! You're all amazing and I just want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH! I LOVE ALL OF YOU!

PLQ WINNER: BrizzyBabber! Congratulations, you've managed to amaze and confuse me all in the first five seconds of reading your review.

PLQ: What should I do next? It's up to you. Give me a fandom or a genre or whatever. If it's an anime I haven't watched, I'll get onto that immediately. I'm very into anime again at the moment, which is good. It keeps me sane… Or insane?

MY PLA: I'm thinking maybe I should finish one of my other on-going stories, or at least update… I have a couple ideas for a The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya fic, among others.

So that is it! Thank you all again for the continued support from everyone, it's been amazing writing for you and I hope to do it again some time!

See you in my next fic hopefully!

Always, forever, and absolutely never.

Read, write, give up.

Love always, Kate!

RR&A!


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